Net Nanny Review and Giveaway

*This post contains affiliate links. Please see my Disclosure Page for details.

ContentWatch provides internet protection solutions for home, corporate, education, and government customers. They have been providing amazing protection since 2001 for Windows and Mac and have recently added Android and iOS products. Their largest product is the amazing Net Nanny which has won more awards than any other parental control product. Over 1 million concerned customers in over 135 countries have utilized ContentWatch for solutions to protect their eyes from unwanted internet content, control online activity and usage, and manage applications used on mobile devices.

A moms review:

We have been faithful Net Nanny customers since 2010. After tons of research and a recommendation from Dave Ramsey's website we decided Net Nanny was the right choice for our family. Now 3 years later we are still protecting our family with Net Nanny and have even added it onto another computer and a cellphone. We were really excited in 2012 that the Net Nanny mobile applications were added! Net Nanny helped our family get through an addiction and save our children's eyes from harmful content.

We are a family that relies heavily on technology...after all we are a homeschool family and I am a blogger and social media manager. A lot of my children's learning is done online on either the computer, tablet or cellphone. Remember I recently blogged about how the internet is one of our homeschooling essentials? Well protecting our family is also VERY essential! And thanks to Net Nanny we can protect our family from: cyberbullies, cyberstalkers, pornography, violence, technology overuse and more.

Check out these scary statistics about porn from Net Nanny:

• Most kids are first exposed to porn at less than 11 years of age?
• An unsolicited image is the beginning of a long battle with porn addiction?
• 1 in 5 children ages 10-17 have been approached for sex online?
• 57% of kids have accidentally accessed inappropriate material online?
• 75% of these young people do not tell their parents about these incidents?
• The porn industry is now the 7th largest industry in the U.S.?
• Unprotected Internet access can lead to identity theft, cyberbullying, and social network dangers?

Net Nanny for Windows:
Net Nanny is easy to install and set up. It is a very affordable program and there are several purchasing options including family (multiple PC) options. Net Nanny is constantly making improvements and always open to hearing suggestions from their customers. They also offer lots of support, webinars, helpful videos, a terrific newsletter and more on their website.

You will always know that Net Nanny is running and protecting the computer it is installed on because the Net Nanny logo will be displayed on the bottom right tool bar. The user can search any browser safely. If there is something objectionable on the website the user is trying to visit, a grey pop up window will appear alerting the user that the website is blocked. If they feel that the website is safe they can send a request override email to the admin. Net Nanny for Windows works on Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP.

There is an awesome web-based management system where the admin can remotely do all of the following: change filter settings and view web pages visited, blocked categories and alerts. This can also be accessed by the admin from the protected PC by clicking on the Net Nanny logo on the toolbar and entering their password.

Here is a screen shot showing many of the areas you can block, allow or warn (there is another section with 35 more categories). You can also manage specific keywords.

Net Nanny for Windows features:

• Filter webpages by category in real time (also filters disturbing ads too)
• Create custom web filtering categories
• Safe Search - enforce
• Individual whitelist/blacklist
• Family-level whitelist/blacklist
• Profanity masking
• Time controls - scheduling
• Monitor social media
• Monitor/block IM/chat
• Manage PC video game use
• Custom user profiles
• Send alerts via email
• Web portal/dashboard
• Reports

Net Nanny for Android:
Over the last year the Net Nanny mobile app has shown great improvement in it functionality. One fantastic improvement has been allowing the mobile user access to their settings (switching wifi networks, adjusting screen brightness and killing background apps) without the admin password. But don't worry the new feature doesn't compromise the app from being uninstalled because to do so the admin password is required. The app is also very affordable and can run on Android 2.2 -Android 4.4 devices including Kindles.

The app installation was simple and you will know that the program is installed and running correctly when you see the Net Nanny logo in the top left corner of the phone. When the mobile user selects any browser on their device to perform an internet search they will automatically be directed to the Net Nanny protected browser (Firefox) to complete it.

The Net Nanny mobile app has a terrific web-based management system just like the Windows version. You can remotely do all of the following: change filter settings; view web pages visited, blocked categories and alerts; and view, block and uninstall inappropriate apps. You can even block in-app purchases as well.

Net Nanny for Android features:

• Internet Filtering (18 categories)
• Age-based profiles
• Safe Search enforcement
• Profanity masking
• Whitelist/blacklist
• Custom filtering categories
• App Manager
• Time Controls
• Remote administration and reports
• Enhanced reporting
• Email notifications

Isn't that a terrific list of features?

Here is a report screen shot for the mobile app.

Though the Net Nanny app is terrific and has shown great improvements over the last year there is one area we hope to see an update for soon. We would love to have the choice of selecting which web browser is used (we prefer Chrome over Firefox which is currently the only browser the app utilizes).

Here is a graphic from Net Nanny which shows how they compare to their competitors:



FREE Trials:
Net Nanny offers FREE trials so you have nothing to loose by trying out their service.

Links to follow:

-Net Nanny Website
-Net Nanny Facebook 
-Net Nanny Twitter page

Where to buy:
1 PC license is $39.99. Or you can protect up to 3 for $59.98, up to 10 for $79.99 and up to 15 for $99.99. Apps are $12.99 for Android and $4.99 for iOS. All subscriptions are 1 year! For ease you can also set your family up on auto renewal so you never have to worry about your protection lapsing. You can order your subscription directly from the Net Nanny website and get protection for your family immediately.

Now time for the giveaway: 
ContentWatch has graciously offered to giveaway 3 copies of their Net Nanny protection program (3 winners). Winners may choose from Windows, Mac, Android, or iOS. Only the first entry is mandatory. Other entries are optional and give you extra chances. This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook in any way. The winner will be posted on the blog and will be emailed. Winner must reply within 24 hrs with their contact information or another winner will be chosen. Open to US only! Prize will be mailed via the company.

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An Awesome App - Available For Android, iPhone, Kindle, Windows Mobile

A couple of days ago I snagged the FREE app of the day from Amazon called iRewardChart. I would like to note that I am not receiving anything from this review, I just really LOVE it and want to share about it with you.

This app is a must have especially for homeschooling parents. If your family is anything like ours you have sticker, star, check mark reward/chore charts all over the house. And if this sounds like your family then you probably also forget to give rewards throughout the busy day. Then your're going to love this app.

This simple to use, fully customizable app has been such a time saver. And its great for parents that are on the go. With this app you can help your children understand consequences, incentives, patience, and the value of setting goals and working to achieve them.

1) After you download and install the app you will need to get it set up by creating your children's accounts. You can create multiple accounts and even customize them with an avatar.

2) Next set up each child's individual tasks. There are many preset ones to choose from but you can also add your own. You can also set how many stars they receive for each task. You can set tasks for virtually everything: behavior, virtues, responsibility, chores, extra curricular activities, etc. We have been using the We Choose Virtues curriculum, which has a sticker chart that I forget to put stickers on. So I added the virtues into the other category and track them on the app throughout the day. Later when I remember I add the stickers to their chart.

3) There is one item to set up before you can start using the app and that is choosing what rewards the children can "payout" for. Again there are preset rewards or you can choose your own as well as how many stars they need for each reward  (e.g., "20 stars = $2 Pocket Money" or "15 stars = One Hour of TV").

4) Now put it into action. When you see your children meeting one of their goals simply tap on their name and the corresponding star. If you think they deserve more than one star just tap it multiple times.

5) If your a social media addict like me you can also connect your Facebook and/or Twitter accounts and share your children's progress with friends and family.

iRewardChart Recognition:
While the iReward App has been busy implementing an effective reward system, it's gotten quite a bit of recognitions itself!

• Recipient of "Best Parenting App" award two years in a row (2010, 2011) via BestAppEver.com
• Featured on NBC Today Show, CNET's top5, AOL's (ParentDish) top10 parenting app, CNN-Money
• Featured under Apple iTunes AppStore "Busy Parents" essentials

Links to follow:
-Facebook
-Twitter
-Website

Where to buy:
If you're an Andorid user order it right here on Amazon, its now $3.99 but believe me it's worth buying. Other platforms visit the iReward website.

Now time for the giveaway: 

IReward has graciously offered to give away two apps for iPhone (sorry Android users apparently iPhone makes it easier to create giveaway codes). Only the first entry is mandatory. Other entries are optional and give you extra chances. This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook in any way. The winners will be posted on the blog and will be emailed. Winners must reply within 48 hrs with their contact information or another winner will be chosen. The winners will receive their app codes via email. 

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*Disclaimer - IReward has graciously offered to giveaway two iPhone Apps. I was not compensated for my review and all opinions are our own! Many of the links found on my side bars and in my blog posts are affiliate links. As a result, I might get paid money and I will most likely spend the money on homeschool supplies.

The 5 Love Languages Of Children Review & Giveaway

We first learned about The 5 Love Languages of Children after my husband and I read The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts which is Dr. Chapman's first book. The 5 Love Languages helped strengthen our marriage and helped us realize a key component we were missing in our marriage which was meeting one anothers primary love language daily and filling up our "Love Tanks."

Well after completing The 5 Love Languages and getting our love languages figured out we realized we were probably not meeting our children's primary love languages like we needed too so we purchased The 5 Love Languages of Children. And let me just say that this book is just as amazing and a MUST have for every parent or parent to be. Dr. Chapman explains in detail the 5 love languages and how they affect our children. When we read The 5 Love Languages of Children we read the 2005 edition. This review though will focus on the new update which was released earlier this year. There have been a few changes to the content and a new look but it still gives a powerful message to ALL parents. Some changes I quickly noticed were in the first chapter. The subheadings are different and bulleted items are cleaner looking. I also love the new quote feature they added to the sides of several pages. One of my favorite quotes is "You may truly love your child, but unless she feels it - she will not feel loved." A major change is the front cover which I actually like better. It is much brighter and more cheerful and I love the rain boots with the flowers poking out. The text is slightly bigger which I like as well (better for those aging eyes, lol).

So if you don't know the The Five Love Languages they are:

• Quality Time
• Words of Affirmation
• Gifts
• Physical Touch
• Acts of Service

The book helped us pin point our children's love language so that we could make them feel extremely loved. In the first chapter of the book you will learn what the emotional tank is, what your children need from you, loving your children as they grow and more. Then you will proceed to the next 5 chapters which discuss the love languages in detail. The chapters will discuss topics such as what that love language is and isn't, what you as a parent should be doing to express that love language and what your children are saying to help reveal their love language.

My favorite part is at the end of each love language chapter where they give parents some ideas for expressing your child's love language. Here are some examples: Physical Touch - snuggle closely together on the couch when watching TV, Words of Affirmation - create a special name of affection for your child that is only used between the two of you, Quality Time - make photo albums together on your computer and talk together about the memories you shared in the process, Gifts - create a secret drawer where your child can keep her small treasures like bird feathers, etc, Acts of Service - assist your child in fixing a favorite broken toy or  bicycle. These ideas really help when you are having a rough day and possibly out of ideas for showing your child's love language. I think copying some or all of these down for your child's love language and placing them somewhere you look everyday like the fridge would be a great idea and a helpful reminder to you to speak your child's love language every day.

The next chapter discusses how to discover your child's primary love language. Generally the love language your child expresses towards you and other is most likely their primary love language. It may take some time to figure out their love language but don't give up the rewards are amazing once you do. There are several great suggestions like listening to your children and their requests and complaints, using choices and for the tough children to figure out the fifteen week experiment.

The next two chapters are probably my favorite and the hardest I think every parent, discipline and the love languages and learning and the love languages. We learned in the discipline chapter that for a child whose love language is physical touch spankings, etc can be very detrimental so we use those as a last resort with Gwyn. A spanking to her is taking her love language and using it in a negative way. It leaves her not only punished but also unloved. If a spanking must occur as a last resort we always follow up with a hug. The chapter on the love languages and learning is a GREAT chapter for homeschool families. Dr. Chapman discusses how the love languages aid in learning, why a child could be anxious and how you can help motivate your child.

For all those parents who loose their tempers like I do sometimes chapter 10 is great. There is a great diagram in this chapter called the anger ladder (another item which should go on the fridge.)

And the final two chapters discuss speaking the love languages in a single parent families and speaking the love languages in marriage. These are both great chapters because how we raise our children, what they learn and how much they feel loved starts with the parents and the relationships they have with each other. Whether you are married, divorced or a widow these two chapters will help you discover your love language needs.

In the back of the book there is an easy assessment called the love languages mystery game which will assist you in figuring out what your child's love language is.

So after reading the book we discovered that Gwyn is Physical Touch and Rowyn is Gifts. The assessment is so easy that a 3-4 yr old can comprehend the questions and answer appropriately. We now make a conscious effort to try and meet our children's primary love languages daily so they have full emotional tanks. It works VERY well with Gwyn. If she gets her cuddles, back rubs, legs rubs, hand holding, hugs and kisses she is a better behaved, happier and more attentive.

Now there is a small problem. It can be very, very difficult to express your children's or even your spouses love language sometimes because 9 times out of 10 your love languages will not be the same. I am NOT a physical toucher and never have been. So trying to meet both my husband and daughter's primary love language (both are physical touch) is hard at times. But all I can say is keep working at it. The rewards are amazing and it does get easier. Take it from someone whose love language was never spoken as a child.  When I discovered my love language which is words of affirmation it finally dawned on me while my self esteem was so bad. Instead and getting positive words of affirmation as a child I was getting negative ones or not receiving any at. When my husband and kids (yup they have their mommy figured out) started speaking my primary love language my self esteem started to improve. Which in turn is making me a better wife and mother. When my husband tells me how much he appreciates everything I do for our family and how much he loves me it melts my heart. And when my kids say, "your the best mommy and teacher ever" or "mommy you're so beautiful" I just want to cry tears of joy. So I can tell you first hand that even though you may not see instant results something huge is occurring and just be patient.

Links to follow:
-The Five Love Languages of Children Website
-The 5 Love Languages Website
-Dr. Gary Chapman on Facebook
-Dr. Gary Chapman on Twitter

Where to buy:
You can purchase The Five Love Languages of Children here on Amazon or on 5 Love Languages.com.

Now time for the giveaway: 
Only the first entry is mandatory. Other entries are optional and give you extra chances. This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook in any way. The winner will be posted on the blog and will be emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hrs with their name, address, phone number, and email address or another winner will be chosen. Prize will be mailed to you directly by Propeller.

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